Syracuse returns from their bye week to welcome longtime nemesis Pittsburgh to the JMA Wireless Dome. The Orange (3-3, 1-2 ACC) and Panthers (4-2, 2-1) are teams headed in different directions after changes at quarterback.
After Steve Angeli’s injury, Rickie Collins took over for SU and the results have been poor. In those two starts, Collins has completed just over 56 percent of his passes for 508 yards with one touchdown against four interceptions. As a result, the Syracuse offense struggled, posting just 21 points in a pair of losses.
The bye week gave the Orange coaching staff and team an opportunity to improve and make adjustments on both sides of the ball. In addition to Collins’ struggles, the run game has been hit-or-miss and the defense has had a difficult time slowing down opponents, giving up 38 and 31 points in those two games.
Pitt, meanwhile, switched to freshman quarterback Mason Heintschel and have won their last two games. Heintschel has thrown for almost 650 yards in his two starts, a 48-0 whitewashing against Boston College and last week’s 34-31 upset at Florida State. While his play has not been perfect, as evidenced by throwing a couple picks last week, that has not slowed down the Panthers.
Despite the quarterback change, Pittsburgh has been an offensive machine this season, tallying almost 36 points per game against FBS opponents. All-purpose running back Desmond Reid returned from injury last weekend and rolled up 200 yards from scrimmage and a pair of touchdowns. The Panther offense will simply be a challenge for a struggling SU defense.
The Pitt defense has been less impressive than their offensive counterparts, giving up at least 31 points in three of their last four games. However, the issues the Syracuse offense has been dealing with play right into their hands.
While the Panthers have been a below average FBS defense in passing yards per game and completion percentage against, their defense ranks second in the country in rushing yards allowed per attempt. While the 131 yards lost on their 17 sacks helps suppress those numbers, the average rush attempt nets a hair under three yards for any Pittsburgh foe this season.
To put it simply, the shortest path for the Orange to win requires their pass attack to be improved beyond what they last displayed two weeks ago. All the evidence to this point suggests that is a big ask. While improvement on the ground and on defense would be welcome signs for SU, it simply seems like a stark improvement across the board is a lot to ask for in one bye week.
Pittsburgh 30, Syracuse 16
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